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Service is King

17/08/2015 | General

If you ask any Pirtek customer what they really want from a supplier, almost without exception, service will be at the top of the list. Many customers have found that a good product or competitive price isn't enough to satisfy their needs if there is no support infrastructure in place.

Ashford MSST Quinton Renda demonstrated how important that service is in managing customer relationships. Although busy on hydraulic engineering repairs, Renda makes it part of his day to call in on customers, to check that previous repairs and service are satisfactory, and that the customer's needs are being met. On one typical day he managed to fit in a raft of customer visits that included Premier Coatings Ltd at Smarden in Kent. The compnay has been leader in corrosion prevention and sealing technology for nearly 30 years. It produces a variety of specialised pipe coatings including tapes, brush and spray applied liquid coatings, mastics, primers and sealants based on materials such as petrolatum tapes, butyle rubber bitumen tapes, plastic and epoxy resin. The company prides itself on being able to supply products that will waterproof anything from a reservoir to flashing on a domestic house. They supply just about every DIY chain in the country including B&Q and Travis Perkins.

Exceptionally Busy

The site is exceptionally busy and loading of products takes place on a 24 hour basis. Recently one essential peice of equipment- a forklift loading ramp- needed some vital repairs to ensure that deliveries could be dispatched without disruption. The ramp required repairs to two rams and the renewal of the hydraulic hose system. No problem except that the repair occurred on 23rd December and instead of a minor reseal and maintenance project, the rams had to be rebuilt after it was discovered by the company's insurance surveyor they were badly worn, pitted and leaking from both glands.

Christmas Repair

Quinton Renda arranged for the rams to be repaired over Christmas so the ramp would be operational for the Monday after the holiday break. Premier's production manager Jason Ingram was delighted to have the ramp back in operation. "This is typical of the service we recieve from Pirtek. We always use them because of their fast turnaround. We wouldnt dream of using anyone else because of the excellent service they give us. They are always within the 1 hour response time and very good on site. Plus we know any replacement hose or part will be of the highest quality and won't want replacing for years" This sentiment was echoed by engineering technician Tony Windsor. "This isn't just about turnaround. Quinton will always help install equipment and come to our rescue when we are up against the wall. Pirtek knows we need reliablity but at sensible prices. For instance, they have sourced all our oils at a price that is cheaper than we can find, are prepared to drop off any quantity that we need, when we want it."

Pleased that he had left a satisfied customer behind, Renda dropped in to see ground maintenance company G Bridgeland at Cranbrook to check if there were any outstanding customer requirements. Again all was well. Next stop was Britannia Forklifts at Charing to drop off a quote he had been working on for the company.

Unusual Fittings

Renda decided to then call in to the massive Marley/DHM Plastics site at Lenham, to check on the installation of some unusual 2" oil cooling pipes used in the cooling tanks to transfer oil for the Tarkett vinyl floor manufacturing section. As it turned out, the manufacturing plant was still undergoing a major refurbishment, and the pipes had not been installed. However, Renda made contact with the site engineers to check they had everything they required, once refurbishment started.

He also called into Rushlift which operates from the same site. Here resident engineer Pete Hutchings is tasked with looking after 100+ vehicles operated by four companies on the Marley site. He has the gargantuan task of single- handedly maintaining a diverse fleet of diesel, petrol and electric forklift trucks, powered pallet trucks, sweepers scissor lifts and booms.

Wanted urgently

Hutchings wanted to discuss the repair of a forklift coming in the following week for major re-hosing. "I have the job of keeping everyone happy and quickly turning round repairs on the fleet. Of course everything is wanted urgently but I can rely on Pirtek to help me out, as and when I need it. They have excellent response time and an enormous range of hoses, fixtures and fittings in stock, that I can't possibly hold for such a diverse fleet. This enables me to efficiently carry out work that might range from hydraulic and steering hose repairs, through to bearing replacement. The vehicles are expected to have a long working life and it is inevitable they will need not just maintenance work, but damage repairs and part replacement caused by sheer wear and tear," Pete Hutchings explains. "I have known Pirtek for years and I'm more than happy to use their products and services."

Customer Satisfaction

In fact, Hutchings was so pleased with the work Pirtek had done, he gave Quinton Renda two personal contacts for other maintenance managers on the site. Now that shows true customer satisfaction, one where you know customer service is king.

"We always use Pirtek because of their fast turnaround, plus we know their parts are of the highest quality."

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